


A Thing Called Privacy

by awkwardblogger



Series: This Little Light Of Mine [3]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Howard Stark's Bad Parenting, Michelle Jones Is a Good Bro, Minor Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Ned Leeds is a Good Bro, News Media, Panic Attacks, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker is Tony Stark's Biological Child, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Happy Hogan, Protective Natasha Romanov, Protective Tony Stark, Tony Stark Has A Heart, no beta we die like idiots, super family
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-23
Updated: 2019-05-26
Packaged: 2019-09-25 08:25:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,894
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17117876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/awkwardblogger/pseuds/awkwardblogger
Summary: Peter Stark is forced out into the public against his will and tries to balance his new fame, being a regular teenager and being a vigilante all while trying to come to terms with his new reality and the things he has seen. Someone should probably get him in therapy.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This chapter features Peter having a panic attack. His panic attack is based on my own, because that's the only experience I have with anxiety attacks. It's not written that well though and I apologize for that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys like this. Sorry it took so long

Peter felt like the world was collapsing around him. The magazine had pictures of him going to school, hanging out with Ned and Michelle, even leaving the hospital after the mugging. Somehow they’d found out his alias and even put that out to the public. His throat tightened, bile rising as well. How did they get these pictures? Was it even legal for them to do this? His heart was racing, his hands were shaking and he felt he couldn’t breathe.

“Peter, are you with me?” Natasha asks in a soft voice, a hand reaching out to him.

He jerks back violently and his breathing feels more constricted, he can hear his heart pounding in his ears. 

“Happy, get us to Stark Tower ASAP.” Natasha says in a firm voice and tries to calm Peter.

His labored breaths turn into hyperventilation  and he starts scratching at his scalp, making himself bleed. Natasha has to grab his hands and pull them away but it only makes Peter scream. 

Happy feels like he’s going to vomit as he hears his honorary nephew scream and thrash in the back seat as Natasha tries and fails to calm him. Happy drives like the devil’s on his tail, ignoring all speed limits and just trying to get Peter home. He knew Peter would react badly to his identity being revealed but he never could have predicted something like this. 

Natasha does her damndest to soothe the boy sitting in the back seat with her. A part of her is tempted to knock him unconscious and if she didn’t care for him so much, she would have. His super strength make him fighting back extremely difficult but she didn’t expect it when Peter threw up. He shook, cried and hyperventilated for the remainder of the ride home. Pulling up at the tower, the tower is surrounded by all sides by paparazzi. Peter starts to whimper and flinch back as the approach.

“Fucking vultures, the lot of them.” Happy snarls. 

Happy parks the car and takes off his suit jacket before getting out of the car and opening Peter’s door. He puts the jacket over Peter’s head and wraps an arm around Peter’s middle, even as the kid flinches back. Natasha follows them, giving the press her best death glare as Happy herds Peter into the building. Natasha has a gun visible, making the press back up nervously and eye her with disdain, but she doesn’t care. Her job is to get her honorary nephew home safely, and after all the distress this has caused Peter, she feels a sense of vindication by scaring them.

Tony is up in the living room waiting for Peter when Jarvis altered him that Peter was having a panic attack. Tony felt his stomach clench and grit his teeth. Peter had never had anxiety or panic attacks before, he wasn’t really sure what the difference was but Peter had never had them up until now. 

“Have the elevator move as fast as possible, Jarvis.” Tony orders out.

“As you wish, sir.” The AI replies.

In less than a minute, Happy is leading a hyperventilating, shivering Peter out of the elevator. Vomit was on the bottom half of Peter’s face and Tony’s heart clenched. 

“Hey Pete.” He greets in a soft voice as he approaches. “Is it okay to touch you?”

Peter hesitates, but nods. Tony wraps an arm around Peter and pulls him into a hug. “Try to breathe with me buddy.” Tony instructs, taking deep breaths. 

Peter tries, but it takes a while, a lot of spit and drool and sobs. Tony only praises his son and cleans Peter’s face with a handkerchief. Once Peter is starting to calm, Tony forces himself to give Peter a soft smile.

“You feeling better?” He asks.

“Yeah.” Peter croaks.

“Why don’t you go lie down for a little bit? Pepper and I need to handle the leak.” Tony says, rubbing Peter’s back.

Peter nods and walks to his bedroom, leaving Tony with a knot in his gut and a lump in his throat. Pepper arrives quickly to the penthouse, Absolutely fuming.

“Those vultures! We’re gonna tie them up in so many lawsuits, their grandkids will feel it!” Pepper hissed.

“Good. Peter’s So fucking shaken by this he had a panic attack, Pep, a bad one too.” Tony grits out.

Pepper curses under her breathe. “Those fuckers, I’ll get them back for this, I promise.” 

Tony nods in agreement while Pepper looks around for their son.

“Where’s Peter?” She asks.

“Laying down in his room. He was so… he seemed so exhausted and scared Pep.” Tony answers, gesturing down the hall.

Tony wants a drink so badly right now. He feels like the urge is tearing him up. “I fucking can’t pepper. I-i need to go to my lab.” He breathes.

“No, Tony you can’t right now.” She protests, ready to start a rant but Tony stops her.

“Pepper, if I don’t go and build I’m gonna drink and I won’t just have one beer, I’ll drink everything I can get my goddamn hands on!” Tony exclaims, frustration written all over his features, from his furrowed brow to his wildly gesturing hands.

Pepper steps back a little bit and takes a deep breath. She’s always known this is why Tony builds so much, but she always needed him to say it for it to feel real for her. He never had before, at least not to her.

A part of her hadn’t realized when Tony got sober that he would find something else to fill his time. First it was parenting and than when parenting started adding to the stress, building became Tony’s refugee. She had hoped he’d take more interest in the company or maybe become like a soccer dad. A part of her, the same part that was once so naive, was bitter he didn’t do as she hoped, that he hadn’t become the soccer dad so she could be off running Stark Industries all the time. 

“Okay, just please be up here when Peter needs you.” She murmurs after a minute.

Tony nods and turns his back to her, walking into the elevator and leaving for his lab. Pepper sighs and looks down at her watch. The lawyers were already working on filing complaints and she had a meeting in a few minutes but she was exhausted. The magazine that Natasha had shown Peter had released earlier in the day to correlate with the Daily Bulge’s website putting the article up. Before noon TMZ had picked it up and other tabloids and news stations followed. Pepper had been horrified when her nine o clock meeting was interrupted to show her the article and she still was. They couldn’t stop the story from running, there wasn’t anything she could do to protect her son. It was painful, being unable to protect him and know that he’s hurting. She’d struggled after the mugging and after Tony revealed that Peter had super powers now, and she still wasn’t over it. It was all too much, she felt like she was failing as a mother and she was suffocating in her mistakes. For the first time since agreeing to be Peter’s mother, she wondered if she had made a mistake.

It’s hard for Pepper to think that there ever was a time her boyfriend didn’t want his son. To anyone that hadn’t seen Tony and Peter before Afghanistan, the idea of Tony Stark ever not loving his son was ridiculous and ludicrous. Since the first picture the paparazzi snapped years ago of Tony walking with a baby Peter in his arms and Tony’s over protective response, it had been clear that Tony was a proud papa and adored his son. Every time an interviewer would ask Tony about Peter, even if it was just trying to learn the child’s name, a certain gleam could be seen in his eyes as he told the reporter that his son was healthy and happy and that was all they needed to know. Tony may have never wanted any more children but that didn’t change that he was a loving and attentive father.

The rare times Pepper does think about or remember when Tony wanted nothing to do with his son, she wonders what would have happened to Peter. When Tony had gone missing, she had waited a month before contacting an adoption agency about Peter. Even though Mary Parker had abandoned her baby, the agency had contacted her to make sure she really didn’t want Peter first. She had told them she had given the baby away to Tony for a reason and hung up. With Tony missing and unable to give up his parental rights however and at the time he hadn’t been officially declared dead, they could only put Peter in foster care, not with a permanent family. Pepper had agreed to care for Peter while the agency tried to work around the limitations they had and than, Tony had come home and wanted his son. 

Pepper had been shocked and a small part of her had been angry with Tony for changing his mind. She’d wanted to chastise him and say Peter wasn’t a toy, Tony couldn’t pick and choose when he wanted to take up parenthood and than drop it again. She’d waited for him to change his mind again, to drop the ball, but he hadn’t. So she finally allowed herself to stop thinking of Peter as temporary. Now, as the media scrambled to talk about the “hidden Stark heir” she wondered how she’d gotten attached so quickly, how she never wanted kids but took up motherhood anyway. Did she take it as seriously as other mothers? Was she a good mom? She wasn’t sure anymore, all she knew for sure is that she loves Peter and he’s hurting.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I have no beta so all mistakes are mine. In the off chance anyone does want to beta for me, drop a comment.

FRIDAY woke Peter up just in time for dinner. He felt exhausted and sluggish as he made his way to the dining room. Sam, Bucky, Steve and the twins were out tonight and Thor was in Asgard leaving only Clint, Bruce, Natasha and his parents home for dinner. The room was eerily quiet when he walked in. 

“How you feeling, kiddo?” Clint asks as Peter sits down across from him.

Peter shrugs. “Okay, I guess.” 

Pepper gives Peter a sad smile. “I already have the lawyers working on lawsuits. All journalists involved in outing you to the public will pay.”

Peter scrunched his face up. “I don’t want to sue them.” He says.

“But baby-” Peter cuts Pepper off.

“I don’t want to sue them!” Peter repeats louder. “A lawsuit isn’t going to change the fact that everyone will know who I am now! Everything’s going to change and money isn’t going to change that!”

Pepper blinks in surprise. It was so out of character for Peter to snap like that and everyone at the table knew that. Everyone stilled at Peter’s outburst.

“Peter,  малютка, Pepper is not saying that money will fix it.” Natasha says slowly.

“Than what’s the point?” Peter demands with a huff, stabbing at his food with his fork.

“The point is that it’ll send a message to all other journalists, letting them know to leave you alone. So you’ll have some privacy still.” Pepper explains with a frown of her own.

Peter was smart enough to figure this out on his own, she didn’t get why he needed the verbal explanation but maybe he was just acting out. She knew it was normal for teenagers to act out when things went wrong, Tony had reportedly been an absolute terror and she was no angel as a teenager either; but Peter was almost never like this. It must have been troubling him deeply.

“So they won’t show up at my school again?” Peter asks.

Tony nods. “Yeah kiddo, we won’t let ‘em near the school again or when you’re out with your friends. New York has laws that protect your privacy and I’m not going to sit back and let the press violate it.”

“Unlike my father” went unsaid, but they all heard it. Peter slumped back in his chair and nodded. 

“I’m sorry Mom, I shouldn’t have snapped at you.” Peter said softly, looking at Pepper with his puppy eyes. 

Pepper’s expression softened. “It’s okay, hon. I understand.”

Dinner continued with subdued chatter and than Natasha led Peter down for some light training, leaving Pepper, Tony, Clint and Bruce alone.

“What are you going to do?” Bruce asked suddenly.

“Huh?” Tony responded.

“The press have been dying to see the Stark baby since the first picture. All his life they’ve been trying to get pictures of Peter. They aren’t going to stop and the lawsuits will only do so much. So what are you going to do?” Bruce demands, his voice a little harder now.

Bruce wasn’t wrong. After the first reports and than confirmation that Tony had a child, the press and the public had been dying to see the child. When Peter was a toddler Tony had to get restraining orders on overzealous journalists. Tony’s refusal to talk about his child for the most part only increased public interest. Bruce wasn’t wrong, the press would scramble to find more pictures of Peter, no matter the cost.

“We could release a picture.” Pepper suggests. “Have a press conference tomorrow and release the pictures to journalists of our choosing. Feed their interest and announce our lawsuits to protect his privacy.”

Tony frowns. The idea makes sense but how will that help? He doesn’t voice his doubt, he trusts Pepper’s judgement and lets her plan this. She went to look for pictures and contact PR, leaving Tony with the two other men.

“How you holding up, Tony?” Clint asks.

“The best I can.” Tony answers honestly. “I wanted to wait till Peter was eighteen to reveal him to the world, but those fucking vultures took away that. Peter’s always had his anonymity, this is going to be ugly for him.”

“And you want to protect your kid.” Bruce added softly.

“Of course I do.” Tony says defensively, puffing up his chest in anger. 

Bruce raises his arms to show he means no harm. “We all know you do, and this is a situation where there’s only so much you can do to protect him. This has got to be hard on you Tony, and I’m here for you.”

Tony deflates a little. “Thanks Brucie.” He says with a small smile.

It was decided Clint would be the one to break the news to Peter that they’d be releasing a picture of Peter and a small statement tomorrow morning. When Peter came back up to the living room after training with Natasha, only Clint sat there.

“Hey bud, how was sparring?” Clint asked, signing as he spoke.

Peter smiled, glad that Clint was going to pretend nothing happened for now. “Yeah, it was good. Natasha kicked my ass as always.”

“The day either one of us beats her, pigs will fly.” Clint jokes.

With Peter’s super strength, it’s likely he could beat her one day, after lots of training and experience, but Clint would probably never and he was okay with that. Peter plopped down in the couch next to Clint and relaxed into the cushions. 

“Where did everyone go?” Peter asked after a beat of silence.

“Tony went to his lab, Bruce is in his room, Natasha’s probably taking a shower and Pepper’s with the PR people.”  Clint answers easily.

Peter raises an eyebrow. “Did they leave you here to wait for me?” 

When Peter was younger and his parents didn’t know how to explain things to him, sometimes they’d leave Clint to break news to him. Clint was always able to understand Peter, to explain things a way a kid could understand without be condescending. So, when Peter saw Clint waiting for him, he had a suspicion Clint was here to tell him something.

“Got it in one.” Clint signs and playfully winks at Peter.

“So what’s up?” Peter questions.

“Your parents decided the best way to keep the press away from you is to release a picture or two of you and make a statement tomorrow.” Clint explains.

Peter groans. “They’re doing a press conference? Do I have to be there?”

“I don’t know if you need to be there.” Clint admits. “But regardless, they’re gonna do the press conference tomorrow.”

Peter nods. “Thanks for the heads up.” 

Peter smiles at Clint but it’s forced and Clint gives his honorary nephew a sad smile.

“I know this is tough kiddo, but you’ll get through this. You’re strong.” Clint signs earnestly.

“But my plate’s already full, Uncle Clint! I can’t have this right now!” Peter exclaims, throwing his hands up in the air once he’s done signing as he speaks.

“That’s understandable, Pete. You’ve had a very full last couple of months, school, your parents fighting, getting powers, the gas station and taking on training. You’ve done great though and. You’ll do just as great here.”

“And what if I don’t? What if I fucked it up and ruin everything and people find out about everything?”

“Peter, we won’t let anything happen to you.”

“You can’t promise that.”

“I can and I will. None of us would allow someone to harm you, especially for your powers.”

“But there’s only so many of you and you have responsibilities besides me! There’s a lot of crazies out there who wanna get their hands on mutants and other super-powered people.”

“I said it before and I’ll say it again, we won’t let anything happen to you. Not as long as one of us is still breathing. You’re family, Pete and we protect family.”

Peter smiles at Clint again and this time it was believable, so Clint smiled back and let his honorary nephew go. He watches Peter head to his bedroom and wondered where all the time had gone. It felt like only yesterday he was meeting Peter for the first time and now, here they are.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First off, according to google translate "малютка" means little one. But it's google translate so it could be wrong.  
> Second, I don't know if New York actually has laws that protects minors from having their information put out like this, but I'm pretending it does.  
> 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this one took so long. Honestly I've been struggling with writing. No matter what I write I seem to hate it and get frustrated. I'm considering abandoning writing all together. I don't know man.  
> Anyways, at the end notes there's links to the pictures referenced in this chapter. If you wanna see them, check them out.

The announcement of the press conference and only specific reporters being invited so quickly after the Stark heir being forced out of hiding meant every reporter in the country was dying to get in. It wasn’t too surprising that TMZ and The Daily Bulge’s reporters weren’t allowed in, but they still kicked up a fit about being excluded. Pepper ignored the fits the reporters threw and Tony scoffed when he heard about them. Peter had agreed to be at the conference and only answer a few questions. They decided it would be best to have Pepper start the conference with the father-son duo out of sight.

Standing outside the door the conference was about to be held in, the Stark-Potts family was huddled together. They could hear the excited chatter of the reporters through the door and Peter could hear reporters outside the building arguing that they should be let in.

“I hate this.” Peter grumbles, tugging at his stiff new jacket sleeve. Pepper had insisted he wear his new, nice those rather than his old, ratty, comfortable clothes.

“I know, but it won’t last long and than you’ll never have to do a press conference again.” Pepper tries to comfort her son.

Peter huffs quietly and Tony ruffles his son’s hair. Unlike Pepper, Tony understands what Peter meant. Peter had been happy to be under the radar, he liked anonymity and now he’d never have it again. Peter had been around rich kids before and he’d seen the way people treated them, like they were a symbol rather than people. They were treated as something to be won and a way to show off status; frankly it disgusted Peter and now he was going to be living it.

“It’ll be okay, kiddo. You have good friends and a family that loves you. We’ll get through this.” Tony consoles Peter, earning a small smile from his son.

Pepper looks at her watch. “Okay, it’s time for me to go in. Happy will come get you when it’s time. Love you.” She says, smacking a kiss on Tony’s cheek and than Peter’s.

Pepper strode through the door and into the room full of reporters. They perked up at the sight of her. She approached the podium and with a firm voice began addressing the crowd.

“Yesterday TMZ and The Daily Bulge released stories on Peter Stark despite laws protecting minors privacy in the state of New York. Mr. Stark and Stark Industries will be suing both The Daily Bulge and TMZ for emotional distress caused to Peter.” Pepper stated.

She watched as reporters typed rapidly on their phones and scribbled on notepads. She knew the lawsuits would be expected and that the crowd wanted more.

“We cannot take away the pictures that were released of Peter, but we can let everyone know that Peter’s safety and well being is very important to us all. He wanted to address you all today, so without further ado, Peter and Tony Stark.” She declares, gesturing towards the door.

Peter and Tony step out, shoulder to shoulder. Peter looks uncomfortable and Tony’s face is his usual facade around reporters. The father and son approach the podium as the reporters went crazy, snapping pictures and shouting questions. Peter flinched and Tony stepped in front of his son protectively, leveling the crowd with a glare. The reporters reluctantly calm and Peter clears  his throat into the microphone.

“Uh, hi everyone. I’m Peter, Peter Stark. Yesterday my identity was revealed without my permission and I was harassed by the press at school. I understand that people are curious about me, but I ask that you please give me my privacy and do not bother me while I’m at school our out with friends again please. I want to thank everyone that’s understood what a difficult time this is for me. Thank you for your support and understanding.” He says awkwardly as cameras flash.

Peter steps away from the microphone and Tony steps forward.

“The kid may have been polite about it but I won’t be. Give Peter his space and privacy in public unless you want a lawsuit on your hands. Peter is a kid, not something for you to gawk at.” Tony states firmly.

Pepper grabs the microphone and tells the crowd that’s all they have to say and ushers the Stark duo out of the room. Peter takes a deep breath the second the door is closed.

“I never wanna do that again.” He huffs.

“And you won’t have to.” Tony says quickly, earning a stern look from Pepper.

“You can’t promise that, he might have to.” She tells Tony sternly.

Tony rolls his eyes and pulls out his phone, following the next step of the PR plan by following Peter’s twitter and instargam accounts before putting out two pictures of Peter. One of Peter sitting by himself with a large smile on his face and another of Peter with Tony and Happy. He types out the caption. “I didn’t want to share you with the world so soon but I am so lucky to be your dad.” He tags Peter and posts it.

Pepper looks over his post and nods. “Okay, that’s it. Now we sit back and let the storm take its course.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've never done this link thing before. If anyone has tips on how to do it better please share, but I hope this works. So the pictures refrenced that the Stark family releases of Peter are these two images: https://i.ytimg.com/vi/eZ_nYdkt720/hqdefault.jpg and https://i.pinimg.com/736x/90/3f/82/903f82f1ab363c0ad7c8e7955c148eca.jpg


End file.
